Don Reed

Built to order

Custom Tools

Small, sharp tools made for one job. Each one started as something a person was doing by hand, over and over. The demos below are live but use sample data only.

Rank Room

A ranking tool for a residency program's application review. It reads each application PDF, fills in the facts automatically, and lets every reviewer say what matters to them. The ranked list updates live, reviewers can override it by hand, and their lists merge into one group consensus that flags where people disagree.

  • Pulls the facts out of 40 application PDFs so nobody retypes them
  • A switch per factor, set to Slight, Important or Critical
  • Works offline in any browser; applicant data never leaves the reviewer's computer

What matters to you?

Sample applicants ranked by weighted score
#ApplicantScoreKnown

Sample data only: these applicants are made up. Change a setting and watch the order change. Blank facts are skipped, not counted as zero. That's why a score built on one or two facts gets a "thin" tag: a high number there means "we barely know them", not "outstanding".

Word Search Book Builder

Type a niche, like "audiologist" or "Susquehanna Valley", and it builds a complete, print-ready puzzle book: a themed word list, 100 puzzles, a full answer key with every solution highlighted, a wraparound cover and the listing copy for Amazon KDP. It runs as a one-click Mac app.

  • 100 puzzles and an answer key in minutes, not weeks
  • Word lists written for the niche, then checked and editable
  • Exports the interior PDF, cover PDF and store listing

The books it makes are for sale under Greenwood Hill Press:

Paperbacks on Amazon ↗ PDF downloads on Etsy ↗

    Try it: this mini version builds a fresh 12 by 12 puzzle in your browser.

    A printed puzzle page from the Susquehanna Valley word search book, with a 15 by 15 grid and a list of local words
    A puzzle page from the finished Susquehanna Valley book
    An answer key page showing four solved puzzles with the found words highlighted
    The answer key, generated automatically

    Have a job that eats your week?

    If you're doing something by hand, over and over, it can probably be a tool. Tell me about it and I'll tell you what I'd build.

    Build me a custom tool